Exercise is Medicine (EIM) is a nonprofit initiative co-launched on November 5, 2007, by the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Medical Association, with support from the Office of the Surgeon General and the 18th Surgeon General Regina Benjamin.

Overview and history

The Exercise is Medicine (EIM) initiative calls for physical activity to be included as a standard part of medical treatment and the patient care process. EIM urges healthcare providers to assess the physical activity levels of their patients at every visit, provide physically inactive patients with brief counseling, and 'write' a basic exercise prescription. Before leaving the clinic setting, inactive patients should also receive a referral to available physical activity resources in the community to assist with becoming more physically active. EIM should be differentiated from Exercise Medicine, which is a medical specialty that exists in some countries, as part of Sport & Exercise Medicine. EIM was started by American College of Sports Medicine President Robert E. Sallis, MD, FACSM in 2007, who has continued to serve as the chair of the EIM initiative since its inception. Under the guidance of Dr. Sallis and the EIM advisory board, Adrian Hutber, PhD, served as the first vice president and has overseen the global development of the initiative over its first decade of existence. From 2007-2017, EIM grew into a "global health" initiative with a presence in more than 40 countries worldwide. The initial five years of the initiative focused on increasing global awareness that "exercise is good medicine". More recently, efforts have shifted toward the strategic implementation of the EIM Solution in healthcare systems.

Implementation

The Exercise is Medicine Solution is the practical implementation of EIM in a health system. The EIM Solution is designed as a simple, brief four-step process that can be carried out in the clinical setting in under five minutes by the entire healthcare team.

The EIM Global Health Network

Over its first decade of existence, EIM has expanded to include partners in more than 40 countries. The EIM Global Health Network consists of EIM Regional Centers in Chile (EIM Latin America), Germany (EIM Europe), and Singapore (EIM Southeast Asia) that help oversee the expansion and development of the initiative in their respective regions. To establish an EIM National Center, national leaders in a country are required to enlist the support of a national primary care organization, a national sports medicine and/or exercise science organization, as well as a leading academic institution. It is also strongly encouraged that the National Ministry of Health is invited to participate as a part of the National Center. The National Center is hosted by a national institution (an academic institution, health organization, or other non-profit organization) under the direction of a National Center Director, acting on behalf of the National Center Advisory Board.